Fiona Morgan, News Editor
Students may remember seeing an email from Director of Safety and Security David Hay on Feb. 10 about car thefts from the Kresge parking lot. The email stated that at least two student vehicles were broken into, but as of Feb. 15, Hay has received eight more car theft reports on Asbury’s campus and additional reports around Wilmore from the police.
At least ten student vehicles were illegally entered in the Kresge, McCrellis, Johnson and upper class lots on the night of Feb. 9, the morning of Feb. 10 or sometime between Feb. 13 and Feb. 15. Eight of those cars were reportedly unlocked; no vehicles were damaged.
Hay said, “These weren’t actually break-ins; these were cars unlocked, and someone has opened the doors and went through the cars and stolen loose change and small items.” However, one student had several hundred dollars worth of sports equipment stolen from a vehicle.
“One of the students reported their car was locked, so we do not know how they got in, and we don’t know why that student’s car would’ve been selected,” said Hay. That student reported nothing valuable was taken.
Asbury University Seminary also reported unlocked vehicles were gone through, along with several other places throughout Wilmore. Wilmore Police Chief William E. Craig said, “There have been, over the last three weeks [as of Feb. 15], random thefts and attempted thefts from vehicles within the City of Wilmore. These acts pertain to unlocked vehicles, and the majority of them have occured on campus parking lots.” Wilmore Police has since increased its patrolling of Asbury’s campus.
The Wilmore Police Department is working closely with Asbury Safety and Security. They have not made any arrests. “We’ve not had a lot of evidence to go on thus far,” said Hay.
Police do not know whether this series of thefts is connected to the four car break-ins on Asbury’s campus in October 2018. In the mid-October incident, three students’ cars were reported unlocked, and one was reported locked. Wilmore Police did not make any arrests for the incidents.
Hay urged students to report if their cars were rummaged through even if nothing was stolen. “[T]hat way we know which side of campus they were on and [can] try to figure out some times that we weren’t there,” said Hay. “The more information we get, the better off we are.”
Hay has talked to student government about plans to put security cameras and enhanced lighting in the Kresge parking lot. The project is still in talks, and Hay does not know if or when the changes would occur.
“But we’ve got to remember, cameras and lighting … are part of it, [but they do] not solve the problem,” said Hay. Hay explained that students and employees must work together to make Asbury less prone to break-ins. He recommended keeping cars locked and valuables out of sight or not in the car at all. He also asked students to report anyone loitering around campus or if their car was entered so that security can better deal with the situation.
Asbury Security patrols campus 24 hours a day year-round and urges students to report any suspicious activity on campus to Switchboard.
